2014 Gambian coup attempt

2014 coup attempt in The Gambia 2014 Gambian coup d'état attempt 30 December 2014 Banjul, The Gambia Coup failure Gambia Gambian Government Military of the Gambia Faction of the Presidential Guard President Yahya Jammeh Lt. Col. Lamin Sanneh 4 deaths, several wounded The 2014 Gambian coup d'état attempt was a coup led by American–Gambian nationals with the intent to overthrow President Yahya Jammeh. It broke out during the night of 30 December 2014, when gunfire erupted in the capital of Banjul. Background At the time of the coup attempt President Yahya Jammeh was out of the country, with sources differing on whether he was in France or Dubai. 30 December 2014 Gambia rocked by shooting while Jammeh abroad https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-30632515 British Broadcasting Corporation 30 December 2014 Jammeh, who himself came to power in the 1994 Gambian coup d'état, had experienced several attempted coups against his regime, and sometimes accused the United Kingdom and the United States of being behind said attempts.Hirsch Afua 9 October 2013 The Gambia accuses UK and US of 'relentless efforts' to arrange a coup https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/09/the-gambia-accuses-us-uk-coup-attempts The Guardian 30 December 2014 Previously in November 2014, Jammeh condemned the European Union for its response to increasingly harsh anti-LGBT discrimination under his government. The following month those same measures caused the United States to drop The Gambia from one of its trade programmes.Saine Pap Flynn Daniel 30 November 2014 Gambia condemns EU pressure on anti-gay law, says to break ties https://www.reuters.com/article/us-gambia-eu-idUSKCN0JE0SE20141130 Reuters 30 December 2014 Lavers Michael K. 24 December 2014 Gambia dropped from U.S. trade program http://www.washingtonblade.com/2014/12/24/gambia-dropped-u-s-trade-program/ Washington Blade 30 December 2014 Perpetuators Lieutenant Colonel Lamin Sanneh earned a masters degree at the National Defense University in Washington D.C. He was eventually chosen to be the commander of the Presidential Guard in The Gambia.2015-01-26 The Dilemma of an African Soldier https://warontherocks.com/2015/01/the-dilemma-of-an-african-soldier/ 2025-10-09 War on the Rocks en-US Njaga Jagne moved to the United States in 1993 and was deployed twice to Iraq. He received expedited citizenship in the United States in 2006, on account of his military service. After returning, he worked for the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program. At the time of the coup, he was a captain in the 149th infantry battalion of the Kentucky National Guard.Rosen Armin A US Veteran Died Trying To Topple An African Dictatorship Last Month https://www.businessinsider.com/the-story-of-njaga-jagne-2015-1 2025-10-09 Business Insider en-US Cherno Nije graduated from University of Texas at Austin in 1987 with a bachelor’s in government. He specialized in tax credits at the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs. He later founded Songhai Development, an affordable housing development agency.Dart Tom Mark Monica 2015-01-06 Gambia coup plotters: model citizens at home in US, but 'everybody has a breaking point' https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jan/06/gambia-coup-plotters-cherno-nije-papa-faal-model-us-citizens 2025-10-09 The Guardian en-GB 0261-3077 Banka Manneh came to the United States in 1995 to pursue his bachelor's degree.“That coup attempt had more to do with desperation than anything else” – The Journalist As Historian http://www.journalist-historian.com/?p=596 https://web.archive.org/web/20250713180540/http://www.journalist-historian.com/?p=596 2025-07-13 2025-10-09 www.journalist-historian.com en-US He worked with Sigga Jagne—Njaga Jagne's sister. Njaga Jagne also participated in a Gambian politics Facebook group which Manneh started. Planning Njaga Jagne became increasingly vocal about his distaste for President Jammeh. In October 2013, Jagne posted an "open letter" to President Jammeh on Facebook, which adopted a violent tone. Jagne reassured his sister that it was just rhetoric. The same month, Jagne discussed endowing a political fund to fuel opposition on an ongoing basis. To this end, his sister suggested getting in touch with Cherno Nije, who she had met at a conference.Rice Andrew 2015-07-21 The reckless plot to overthrow Africa's most absurd dictator https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/21/how-former-us-army-officer-launched-disastrous-coup-the-gambia 2025-10-09 The Guardian en-GB 0261-3077 Cherno Njie had been funding a radio station in Senegal which broadcast anti-Jammeh propaganda into The Gambia, and had previously paid for Manneh's travel to lobby the United Nations in favour of sanctions against The Gambia. In 2013, President Jammeh removed Lt Col. Lamin Sanneh from commander of his Presidential Guard. Sanneh then fled to Washington, D.C.Rosen Armin A US Veteran Died Trying To Topple An African Dictatorship Last Month https://www.businessinsider.com/the-story-of-njaga-jagne-2015-1 2025-10-09 Business Insider en-US There, he got in touch with his friend Banka Manneh, who put Sanneh in touch with Jagne. Jagne also recruited Papa Faal, Alhagie Barrow, other Gambians, and veterans of the United States Army, as well as several Gambians living in Europe. Over time, the group got increasingly political. In March 2014, Manneh wrote "Is military action a viable option? Me thinks, what do you?:)." Jagne & Manneh convinced Niji to finance the plot, and the budget for the coup was set to $200,000. Banka Manneh, who claimed to have high level friends in the Gambian military, claimed he would be able to gather a force of 160 soldiers from inside The Gambia to assist in the coup. Barrow and Jagne began buying weapons. Manneh drafted a document titled "Transition Into the Third Republic," which placed Cherno Nije as interim president for 2 years.Gambia: 'Let's Go Take Back Our Country' https://pulitzercenter.org/stories/gambia-lets-go-take-back-our-country 2025-10-09 Pulitzer Center en The group planned to ambush Jammeh's motorcade, disable the lead vehicle, and persuade the bodyguards to disarm themselves. They also formed an alternative plan to attack the State House of the Gambia, the official presidential residence, again hoping to negotiate with the guards but preparing for forceful entry if needed. If they failed, they planned to blend in with civilian clothes. If they succeeded, they planned to recruit the military to secure critical infrastructure, shut down cell service, and have Manneh use state radio and television to announce their success. They shipped their weapons and flew to Dakar, Senegal. The FBI attempted to contact numerous participants. Manneh did not attend, as he had discovered an alternate plot by Niji which did not include him. They decided to attack the State House and instead kidnap General Saul Badjie, because Jammeh was leaving. Events On December 30, 2014, the gunmen recruited by the plotters attacked the State House. Local media quickly identified them as having entered the country from neighbouring Senegal under the command of Lt Col. Lamin Sanneh.Jarju P. K. 30 December 2014 Gambia Deaths As 'Coup' Foiled http://www.jollofnews.com/index.php/national-news/politics/629-gambia-deaths-as-coup-foiled Jollof News 30 December 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20150101174343/http://www.jollofnews.com/index.php/national-news/politics/629-gambia-deaths-as-coup-foiled 2015-01-01 usurped The gunmen engaged in heavy fire with government forces. Soldiers blocked several points of entry to the city and a full blackout of the state radio and television was placed into effect.Touray Suwaibou 30 December 2014 Gunshots Reported at President's Residence in Gambia Capital https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-30/gunshots-reported-at-president-s-residence-in-gambian-capital.html Bloomberg News 30 December 2014 Gunfire Reported in Gambian Capital as President Away https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2014/12/30/world/africa/ap-af-gambia-unrest.html?_r=0 The New York Times 30 December 2014 30 December 2014 The fighting diminished later during the day. Banks and other businesses remained closed while state radio played traditional music, mentioning nothing of the night's events.Felix Bate Lewis David 30 December 2014 Soldiers lock down Gambia capital after overnight shooting https://www.reuters.com/article/us-gambia-security-idUSKBN0K80MT20141230 Reuters 30 December 2014 Four people, including Sanneh and Njaga Jagne, were killed, and several more were injured. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-story-of-njaga-jagne-2015-1 A US Veteran Died Trying To Topple An African Dictatorship Last Month Rosen Armin 17 January 2015 Business Insider 21 July 2015 With the gunmen failing to consolidate control, the coup failed. Jammeh returned to Gambia the following day. Jammeh reshuffled his cabinet on January 10.10 January 2015 Gambia reshuffles cabinet after coup attempt https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/1/10/gambia-reshuffles-cabinet-after-coup-attempt 26 December 2022 Al Jazeera Aftermath After the coup failed, Papa Faal, one of the co-conspirators, entered the United States embassy in Dakar, Senegal seeking protection. However, he was instead interrogated. On January 1, 2015, the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation raided homes in Georgia, Kentucky, Minnesota, and Texas as part of an investigation into the coup. That same weekend, the FBI also raided the offices of a Texas development firm. The owner of the Texas firm, Cherno Nije, was arrested at Washington Dulles International Airport and charged with violating the successor statute to the Neutrality Act of 1794. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/21/how-former-us-army-officer-launched-disastrous-coup-the-gambia The reckless plot to overthrow Africa's most absurd dictator Rice Andrew 21 July 2015 The Guardian 21 July 2015 During the raid on Nije's home in Texas, the FBI found a manifesto entitled "Gambia Reborn: A Charter for Transition from Dictatorship to Democracy and Development," as well as a spreadsheet detailing the coup attempt's $221,000 budget funded by Nije, who was a millionaire. https://www.buzzfeed.com/hayesbrown/meet-the-man-who-wanted-to-rule-the-gambia Meet the Man Who Wanted to Rule the Gambia Brown Hayes 6 January 2015 BuzzFeed 21 July 2015 Faal was also charged and later pleaded guilty. Two Defendants Charged For Their Role In An Attempted Coup In The Gambia 5 January 2015 U.S. Attorney's Office - District of Minnesota http://www.justice.gov/usao-mn/pr/two-defendants-charged-their-role-attempted-coup-gambia 21 July 2015 https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/how-a-reviled-african-ruler-survived-a-coup-hatched-in-the-united-states/2015/05/31/a9fc1772-0485-11e5-8bda-c7b4e9a8f7ac_story.html How a reviled African ruler survived a coup hatched in the United States Whitlock Craig 31 May 2015 The Washington Post 21 July 2015 Goldman Adam Two others, Alagie Barrow of Tennessee and Banka Manneh of Georgia, were also charged. https://www.voanews.com/a/us-man-pleads-guilty-in-gambia-coup-plot/2621051.html Third American Citizen Charged in Gambia Coup Plot 30 January 2015 Voice of America 21 July 2015 http://www.foroyaa.gm/archives/4373 Banka Manneh Charged In the US In Relation To State House Attack Nyang Modou 23 March 2015 Foroyaa Newspaper 21 July 2015 Both later pleaded guilty as well. http://www.foroyaa.gm/archives/5010 In U.S. Trial: Banka Manneh, Alagie Barrow to Plead Guilty Nyang Modou 4 May 2015 Foroyaa Newspaper 21 July 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150713065116/http://www.foroyaa.gm/archives/5010 13 July 2015 dead Nije was sentenced to one year and one day in prison, Barrow and Manneh each received six-month sentences, while Faal was sentenced to time served.2016-05-12 District of Minnesota Four United States Citizens Sentenced for Attempting to Overthrow the Gambian Government United States Department of Justice https://www.justice.gov/usao-mn/pr/four-united-states-citizens-sentenced-attempting-overthrow-gambian-government 2023-12-07 www.justice.gov en The Washington Post later revealed that the FBI had interviewed Sanneh at his home in Maryland and thereafter tipped off Senegalese officials about the plot through the State Department. It was reported on 2 April 2017 that the corpses of three alleged conspirators, Lamin Sanneh, Alagie Nyass and Njaga Jagne were discovered by Gambian police after the fall of the Jammeh regime.http://www.africanews.com/2017/04/02/gambia-bodies-of-three-accused-coup-conspirators-in-2014-discovered/ Bodies of three accused coup conspirators in 2014 discovered 2 April 2017 africanews.com 13 April 2017 See also 1994 Gambian coup d'état Dawda Jawara History of the Gambia LGBT rights in the Gambia References Gambia Category:Attempted coups d'état in the Gambia Gambian coup d'état attempt Category:Politics of the Gambia Coup d'état attempt Gambian coup d'état attempt